Antifungal Activities of Essential Oils and Crude Extracts of Some Aromatic Plants Against Fusarium Rot of Trichosanthes Dioica Roxb

Abstract

The infected Pointed gourds samples were collected from the local market of Kathmandu Valley. The fungus isolated from the infected Pointed gourds was identified as Fusarium solani, which was responsible for the storage fruit rot disease. Pathogenicity test was carried out for the confirmation of disease by transferring the inoculum from the pure culture of Fusarium solani to healthy Pointed gourds. For the control, the essential oils and extracts from five aromatic plants viz. Zanthoxylum armatum, Mentha arvensis, Amomum subulatum, Valeriana jatamansi and Cymbopogon flexuosus were used to assess their fungitoxic activities against the test fungus. Each essential oils was diluted to different concentrations of 0.625, 1.25, 2.5, 5.0 and 10.0µlml-1 (in 80% Acetone) and the extracts were diluted in to 0.625, 1.25, 2.5, 5.0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50 & 100 µlml-1 (in distilled water). The value of minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) and percentage of mycelial growth inhibition of the essential oils and extracts were obtained as, the oil and extract of Cymbopogon flexuosus showed the highest fungitoxicity (100%) at the concentration of 5.0 and 50 µlml-1, similarly the oils and extracts of Zanthoxylum armatum, Mentha arvensis, Amomum subulatum and Valeriana jatamansi were found to be 10 and 100 µlml-1 respectively. The percentages of mycelial growth inhibition were found to be different, according to their different concentration of each essential oils and extracts. The highest percentage of mycelial growth inhibition were found to be oils of Cymbopogon flexuosus followed by Amomum subulatum, Zanthoxylum armatum, Mentha arvensis and Valeriana jatamansi respectively and similarly extracts of Cymbopogon flexuosus followed by Zanthoxylum armatum, Amomum subulatum, Valeriana jatamansi and Mentha arvensis respectively. Thus comparative fungitoxicities of five different essential oils and extracts were observed against Fusarium solani.